It was a busy fall week in Alexandria. Here’s the rundown.
Our top story this week was on a plan to completely close off the 100 block of King Street as a pedestrian-only zone. The plan has been in the works since 2019, and was put into action last year. ALXnow’s poll on the subject had very one-sided results, showing 91% (791 votes) in favor of a permanent change.
The groundbreaking for AlexRenew’s RiverRenew Tunnel Project was about as Alexandria as events get. The event was a who’s-who of current and former officials, complete with bagpipes, a poem about local sewage presented by the Town Crier, and even a cartoon mascot representing the boring machine getting ready to drill the largest infrastructure project in the city’s history.
The smiles and enthusiasm from city and state officials and organizations like the Potomac Riverkeeper Network were a marked departure from the occasionally contentious process that led to the $454.4 million RiverRenew project. Plans include replacing Old Town’s combined sewer system with a new sewer structure that will prevent 120 million gallons of combined sewage from flowing into the Potomac River.
Murphy’s reserves table for Marines lost in Afghanistan — “Last night, Friday, August 27, Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub on King Street reserved a table and set 13 places in honor of the 13 soldiers lost in Afghanistan earlier this week.” [Zebra]
4.1 million meals given to ACPS students during pandemic — “In March 2020, Alexandria City Public Schools called on Volunteer Alexandria to help distribute meals to students who were suddenly learning from home due to the pandemic… By the middle of August, Volunteer Alexandria and ACPS had delivered 4,106,889 grab-and-go meals and snacks to Alexandria students and their families.” [Alexandria Living]
Today on WAMU’s The Politics Hour, Mayor Justin Wilson laid out plans for flood infrastructure work, predicted a decision this fall over whether recreation centers will require proof of vaccination, and tacitly endorsed the Arlington-Georgetown gondola.
The discussion of the mayor took up the back half of the hour-long program hosted by Kojo Nnamdi and Tom Sherwood. As fitting the program’s name, the show started with a question of politics and whether Mayor Justin Wilson is planning to debate Republican candidate Annetta Catchings.
What a hot week in Alexandria. Here is the rundown.
Our top story this week was on the five men arrested after shots were fired in Old Town last month. There were quite a few crime incidents to report on, in fact, including a man who was arrested in the Landmark area after shooting his cat and a man arrested for selling marijuana and illegally possessing a gun.
A new state grant could help fund the city’s expensive, state-mandated RiverRenew project and offset some of the sewer rate increases for Alexandrians.
According to a press release, Alexandria Renew Enterprises (AlexRenew) — which runs the RiverRenew project — has been recommended to receive a $50 million grant to support construction on the project. The RiverRenew project is an overhaul of the city’s combined sewer system in Old Town that results in millions of gallons of sewage flowing into the Potomac River ever year.
Massive infrastructure project RiverRenew has laid out a rough timeline for the ambitious three-pronged work throughout Old Town later this year.
The project is part of compliance with a 2017 Virginia law that requires Alexandria to overhaul the city’s combined sewer system, which has been dumping 130 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River every year. The city is required to complete the overhaul by July 1, 2025.
Alexandria Black History Museum director speaks on anniversary of George Floyd’s murder — “Yes, there have been changes – Diversity and inclusion training are being taught in universities and the American workplace, some racists are being held accountable, corporations have promised new more transparent hiring procedures that would add African Americans to leadership positions, TV shows and advertisers have hired people of color in record numbers and The Oscars are not quite so #OscarsSoWhite anymore. All of this is meaningful, but it must be more than a quick fix. Everyone needs an ally, but being a true ally goes deeper than the protests. To be a real ally, you need to be there for the hard work, the messy work, and the unpleasant conversations about race and racism. You need to turn the mirror inward and make the personal changes that will help make your community a better place.” [Zebra]
Local chef appearing on FOX baking competition tonight — “Erinn Roth still can’t believe she was chosen to compete on FOX’s new baking competition show. ‘Crime Scene Kitchen’ premieres this Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET… The contestants are allowed to explore a kitchen that was recently used to bake a specific treat. They must use their baking skills and the clues left behind to determine what was baked and then they have two hours to recreate what they think it was. At the end of each episode, after two rounds, a team is eliminated.” [Alexandria Living]
(Updated 4:40 p.m.) Alexandrians could see their wastewater bill go up an average $50 per year with a new rate adjustment aimed at funding the extensive RiverRenew program.
The adjustment has been in the works for a while but was delayed last year in light of the impact of COVID-19 on the local economy. The rate would be in place for two years to finance AlexRenew’s state-mandated efforts to overhaul the city’s sewer system.
Alexandria sixth most diverse midsize city in U.S. — “To determine the places in the U.S. with the most mixed demographics, WalletHub compared the profiles of more than 500 of the largest cities across five major diversity categories: socioeconomic, cultural, economic, household and religious. Alexandria ranks 18th overall but 6th among midsize cities.” [Alexandria Living]
Inova hosting virtual meeting on rezoning proposal — “Inova Health System will hold a third virtual community information meeting on May 3, from 6 – 7 p.m. to discuss the proposed master plan amendment and rezoning of the Inova Alexandria Hospital property at 4320 and 4250 Seminary Road. In order to facilitate the relocation of the hospital from its current location on Seminary Road to Landmark Mall, Inova will request to rezone the existing hospital site to allow for single family, duplex, and townhome residential uses.” [City of Alexandria]
The Water Taxi and other cruises are returning to the Alexandria waterfront on Friday (March 19), just in time for a trip down the Potomac to check out the Cherry Blossoms in full bloom.
Hornblower Cruises and Events just announced that it will resume its cruising operations along the Potomac River from Old Town to The Wharf in D.C., Georgetown and National Harbor. Sailing on the vessels was shut down during the pandemic.
